Philippines: AboitizPower to pay Blackstone $1.2b in GNPower deal

Philippines: AboitizPower to pay Blackstone $1.2b in GNPower deal

Philippine power titan Aboitiz Power Corp (AboitizPower) will pay around
$1.2 billion in its purchase of all partnership interests held by affiliated
investment funds of US-based private equity the Blackstone Group LP in two
power facilities in Bataan province.

The Blackstone-backed firms World Power Holdings LP, and its unit Sithe
Global Power LLC, sold 100 per cent of their shares in the coal-fired
facilities GNPower Mariveles plant, and GNPower Dinginin project run by
GNPower Ltd, which is a subsidiary of Power Partners Ltd Co.

AboitizPower's wholly owned subsidiary Therma Power Inc (TPI) has just
entered into purchase and sale agreements for the shares acquisition after
outbidding Kuwait Investment Authority, private equity firm CVC Capital
Partners, Malaysian power company Malakoff Corp, a consortium of Singapore's
sovereign wealth fund GIC Pte, and an infrastructure investment fund managed
by Macquarie Group Ltd.

TPI is the holding company of the Aboitiz Group's investments in
non-renewable energy.

Based on the transactions, World Power Holdings and Sithe sold all their
66.1 per cent stake and 40 per cent stake in GNPower Mariveles, and GNPower
Dinginin, respectively.

GNPower Mariveles is a subcritical 604-Megawatt coal-fired power plant,
consisting of two units including all associated and auxiliary assets, while
GNPower Dinginin is a 1,336-MW power station under construction consisting
of two identical 668 MW power blocks using subcritical Pulverized Coal
Combustion technology. All plants are located at the Bataan Peninsula, West
of Philippine capital Manila.

The GNPower Ltd is co-owned by Sithe, and AC Infrastructure Holdings Corp
(AC), the energy unit of domestic conglomerate Ayala Corp. AC owns 20 per
cent of the Mariveles power plant.

"The acquisition of the beneficial ownership interests in the target
companies is in line with Aboitiz Power Corporation's target to increase its
attributable net capacity to 4,000MW by 2020," AboitizPower said in its
statement.

All parties expect to close the acquisition of the target companies upon the
approvals from the Philippine Competition Commission (PCC), and the Board of
Investments (BOI) for GN Power Mariveles.

The number of shares bought and price per share were not disclosed. The
transaction will be funded via a loan facility and internally generated
cash.

In fact AboitizPower just signed a $650 million loan Facility Agreement with
various banks whose loan proceeds will be used to partially finance TPI's
acquisition of all indirect partnership interests held by funds managed by
Blackstone in GNPower Mariveles, and GNPower Dinginin power plants.

The power firm signed the loan facility with The Bank of Tokyo-Mitsubishi
UFJ Ltd, DBS Bank Ltd, The Hongkong and Shanghai Banking Corporation
Limited, Maybank Kim Eng Securities Pte Ltd, Mizuho Bank Ltd, and Standard
Chartered Bank.

Incorporated in 1998, AboitizPower is the holding company for the Aboitiz
Group's investments in power generation, distribution, and retail
electricity services. Through its subsidiaries and affiliates, it has
interest in a number of privately-owned generation companies and
distribution utilities.

AboitizPower's last trading price increased 0.99 per cent or P0.450 to close
at P46.10.

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Ref:
http://www.dealstreetasia.com/stories/philippines-aboitizpower-to-pay-blacks
tones-sithe-1-2b-in-gnpower-deal-54678/

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John Diecker
APT Consulting Group Co., Ltd.

www.aptthailand.com